OSHKOSH – The story goes that a Lourdes Academy assistant coach once overheard two young girls in the halls outside of The Castle arguing over which one got to be their favorite player in their make believe game.

They each wanted to be Katie Van Scyoc.

The 6-footer certainly left her mark on the school’s basketball program and it’s those moments that don’t involve points or rebounds or 3-pointers that stand out the most in the mind of the Drake University recruit.

“It’s those little things that I remember the most, more than the stats,” Van Scyoc said. “My biggest stat isn’t a number to me. It’s more the impact that I have on the court with my team and the impact I have on the younger generation, too.”

Van Scyoc capped her career with the Knights with another outstanding season. She averaged 20.2 points, 7.3 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 2.7 steals per game in leading Lourdes to another Trailways North title. She repeated as the Trailways North Player of the Year – an honor dominated by Lourdes players over the past several seasons – and is the 2016-17 Oshkosh Northwestern Media All-Area Girls Basketball Player of the Year.

Van Scyoc was one of three players from Lourdes Academy to earn first-team all-area honors along with fellow senior Ellie DeGroot and sophomore Alexis Rolph. Oshkosh North senior Sammy Buerger and Omro junior Ashley Buchholz were also named to the first team.

It was the second straight all-area Player of the Year honor for Van Scyoc and her third straight season on the first team. She also joins the likes of Lourdes standouts Jamie Spanbauer, Maddy Reed and Lexy Peterman to earn top honors in the area.

“It’s really cool with the history of basketball that we’ve had (at Lourdes Academy), it’s really special to be a part of that,” Van Scyoc said. “It comes down to how we play as a team and the amount of work that we put into it, that’s why we get the results we do.”

Van Scyoc scored at least 13 points in every game this season, topped the 20-point mark 12 times and posted seven double-doubles.

Her season high of 34 points came in a memorable game against Central Wisconsin Christian when the Knights knocked down 21 3-pointers in an 86-40 win.

“That was a really fun game. During the game, I don’t think anybody realized how many we had,” said Van Scyoc, who hit nine treys in that contest. “I remember Ellie (DeGroot) and I were joking in the first half because she had made her first five and I think I made my first six and we looked at each other like we don’t want to shoot anymore because we don’t want to be the first to miss one.

“That was a really fun night, but I think it’s also shows all of the time we put in the gym to make those 21 3s.”

Van Scyoc also cited the Knights’ games in the Franklin Tournament over the Christmas Holiday where Lourdes faced Division 1 opponents Germantown and Middleton.

The Knights knocked off Germantown, 70-61, while suffering their only regular-season loss to Middleton in overtime after rallying from an early 24-6 deficit.

“Just proving we could come back and force overtime against a very good team, that was really fun. The level of play down there was so good,” Van Scyoc said. “I think we proved D4 (level basketball) is not a joke and we can hang with anybody.”

Although the Knights’ season ended in a stunning loss to St. Mary’s Springs in a regional final, it is not the final chapter of Van Scyoc’s basketball career.

She is looking forward to joining Drake University next season and compete at the NCAA Division I level. Van Scyoc knows it will be a big step up to compete at the collegiate level and is looking to expand her game even more, while continuing to improve in all areas.

“I’d like to work on my post-up game to get better down there and get stronger,” Van Scyoc said. “I don’t have any regrets about my high school career. I worked as hard as I could and there’s a lot more to be proud of than to be upset about.”

Buchholz was a unanimous first-team selection in the Flyway Conference who averaged 14 points and eight rebounds per game this season for the Foxes. She posted eight double-doubles, while also leading the team in steals and blocks and ranking second in assists.

Buerger ranked fifth in the FVA averaging nearly 13 points per game, while earning second-team all-league honors. She also averaged more than five assist and four rebounds per game this season for the Spartans.

DeGroot blossomed into one of the top 3-point shooters in the area, finishing the season shooting 42 percent from behind the arc, while knocking down 60 3-pointers. The first-team Trailways North selection averaged 14.8 points per game, while also averaging five rebounds and 3.5 steals per contest.

Rolph was the point guard for the Knights, leading then in assists with 131 this season – about six per game. She was also second on the team in scoring at 16.2 points per game and a first-team Trailways North selection.

The all-area second team consisted of senior Kaylee Anthes and sophomore Ashley Wissink of Oshkosh North, senior Sadie Kosciuk and junior Jordyn Ellis of Winneconne and junior Quinn Godfroy of Lourdes Academy.